


Sweet Dreams

by kopycat_101



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adorable Marc Anciel, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Asexual Character, Awkward Conversations, Awkward Flirting, Awkwardness, Bar & Bat Mitzvah, Bisexual Disaster Nathaniel Kurtzberg, Bisexual Male Character, Bisexual Nathaniel Kurtzberg, Boys In Love, Canon Jewish Character, Confessions, Crush at First Sight, Crushes, Cute Ending, Cute Kids, Dreams, Family Fluff, First Crush, First Love, Fluff, Gay Disaster Marc Anciel, Gay Male Character, Gay Marc Anciel, Gay Panic, Getting Together, Jewish Character, Love Confessions, M/M, Male-Female Friendship, Marc Anciel has Two Moms and he loves them dearly, Meet-Cute, Middle School, Mutual Pining, Nathaniel and Alix are Childhood Best Friends, Nathaniel has a cool older sister, Near Future, OCs are mentioned for Marc and Nathaniel's family members, Pining, Platonic Soulmates, Pre-Canon, Pre-Slash, Romantic Soulmates, Secret Crush, Slash, Soulmates, Teen Crush, Teen Romance, Teenage Dorks, Teenagers, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, soulmate dreams
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2020-07-14
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:41:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25267042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kopycat_101/pseuds/kopycat_101
Summary: Marc is ten when he gets his first soulmate dream of a man with short, bright-red hair and pretty blue eyes, his nose and cheeks covered in freckles.Nathaniel is thirteen when he gets his first soulmate dream of him dolled up in a suit, with Alix as his best man, ready to take him to the alter.Not everyone decides to save themselves for their soulmates. People still date each other without being tied through fate. Hell, a good percentage of people don’t even marry their soulmates.Marc and Nathaniel are both hopeless romantics, however, and have never been more excited and smitten of the thought of being married to someone who loves them, who’s meant to be with them.(Soulmate AU: You dream about your future self in a time when future!you has already met your soulmate.)
Relationships: Alix Kubdel & Jalil Kubdel, Alix Kubdel & Jalil Kubdel & Nathaniel Kurtzberg, Alix Kubdel & Nathaniel Kurtzberg, Marc Anciel & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Marc Anciel & Nathaniel Kurtzberg, Marc Anciel & Original Anciel Character(s), Marc Anciel/Nathaniel Kurtzberg, Nathaniel Kurtzberg & Original Kurtzberg Character(s)
Comments: 22
Kudos: 94





	Sweet Dreams

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Username8746489](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Username8746489/gifts).



> This fic is both a gift and inspired by the writing of Username8746489! UN is super sweet and a constant supporter of my work, and I write so much MarcNath in part because of her. 
> 
> Check out her stuff if you haven't already! UN is young, but an absolute unit in the MarcNath fandom.
> 
> This was originally meant to be short, but at this point I'm not surprised it came out to be this length in the end lol, that's just part of my branding by now ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

* * *

Marc blinks hazily.

He was…sitting at a desk. There was a notebook in front of him, and a pencil in his hand.

“Hey, how’s the script coming?” Marc hears a voice behind him, deep and soft and nice-sounding.

He turns to look over his shoulder. His eyes meet a jacket and t-shirt. He raises his eyes up to the person’s face, seeing a man smile softly down at him. The man has short, bright-red hair and pretty blue eyes, his nose and cheeks covered in freckles.

Oh. This is his soulmate, right? It has to be.

The man is so pretty, Marc feels his face go warm.

“G-good,” he manages to squeak out. “Um. Hi?”

Marc’s soulmate smiles wider at him, laughing. It’s a very nice laugh, light and warm.

“Hi. Sorry for catching you off guard,” his soulmate says, dipping to press a quick peck on the top of his head, like how his Mom and Mama like to do. Marc feels his face get even warmer, but he also feels himself smile back.

His heart feels full. He must really, really love his future soulmate, then, huh?

Marc looks down at his hand, seeing two rings on his ring finger, like his moms have.

* * *

The next thing he knows, Marc is blearily blinking his eyes open, staring at his ceiling full of star stickers. The room is light; it’s morning already…?

The boy grumbles, turning to press his face against his pillow, chasing the warmth.

Then five seconds later, he jolts upright, eyes going wide as the memory of the dream bounces around in his mind. He gasps, a beaming smile spreading on his lips.

He just had his soulmate dream…! He just saw his _soulmate_!

“Mom! Mama!” he calls loudly, throwing aside his covers and tripping his way over to his bedroom’s door.

There’s a loud bang, and when Marc exits his room, his Mom’s thrown the door open to her and Mama’s bedroom, armed with the pocketknife she always keeps by her bedside.

“What is it? What’s wrong?!” Mom demands, her eyes wild and hair looking like an even messier rat’s nest than Marc’s.

Marc doesn’t throw himself into his Mom’s arms, knowing that it would be a bad idea with her holding her knife out in front of her. Instead, he jumps in place, squealing excitedly as he exclaims, “I just got my soulmate dream…!”

The dangerous look on Mom’s face drops instantly, and she grins, flipping the knife back closed. “Did you really…? That’s amazing, baby!”

Marc launches himself into his Mom’s open arms, now that she was unarmed. “It is! I got it…!” He giggles, snuggling into Mom’s hug, feeling so happy he could burst.

“What’s going on…?” Mama yawns loudly, barely padding out of her and Mom’s room. Her curly hair was pulled back in a poofy ponytail, and she had a bathrobe on.

Marc leans around Mom and crows the news once more for Mama Carmen’s benefit. “I got my soulmate dream!”

“Oh…! Oh, _mijo_ , that’s great!” Mama beams, getting over her sleepiness. She steps forwards and sandwiches Marc in a hug between her and Mom. “ _Que gusto_! I’m so happy for you!”

“Thanks, Mama!” he chirps back, giggling. “I have a super pretty boy for a soulmate! And I think we’re married, too…! I had two rings like you and Mom, and everything!”

“Oh, _nice_!” Mom hoots, grinning wide and toothy. “My baby boy, living up to our gay legacy!”

“Yup!” Marc chirps, with a wide smile to match.

Mama laughs. “Well, good for you, _mijo_! Though if it was a girl, we would still love you and your soulmate.”

“Right. Of course,” Mom says quickly—a bit too quickly.

Marc just giggles. “Yeah, but I like that it’s a boy! He seemed super nice, too…” he trails off, ducking his head, feeling his cheeks go warm.

“Well, I can’t wait to meet him some day, then,” Mama says warmly, letting go of Marc to press a kiss on his head. “Let’s go celebrate with some pancakes! After all, it’s not every day you get your first soulmate dream.”

“Hell yeah it’s not!” Mom whoops, picking Marc up and spinning him around, causing him to squeal and laugh. “My little baby man, barely in his double digits and already having his soulmate dream! That must be a record!”

They all laugh together, Marc feeling warm and loved as Mom takes his right hand and Mama takes his left.

Today was a good day. And the day he meets his soulmate, it’ll be an even better one.

* * *

Nathaniel was nervous.

He was having his Bar Mitzvah soon. That was already anxiety-inducing as it is. His parents are planning on throwing him a huge party, inviting all their extended family, and coworkers, and stuff. It was gonna be a Big Deal.

But, no. It wasn’t just his Bar Mitzvah that was making Nathaniel nervous.

It was the possibility of getting his soulmate dream.

It wasn’t a guarantee, of course. But it was really common for Jewish people to get their first soulmate dream around the time of their Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah. Nathaniel theorized that it had something to do with tradition and faith.

It was impossible to control soulmate dreams, as each person was different. No one knew the concrete reasoning or start of soulmate dreams either. But maybe because you believe in it enough, your dream came to you at a certain time…?

He wasn’t sure, though. Nathaniel didn’t have many friends to ask about their soulmate dreams in the first place. And all the research he did on the matter through the internet was confusing, too many conflicting accounts to sift through.

Nathaniel stopped researching the second he came across a crazed antisemetic conspiracy theory about Jewish people being controlled by the devil because so many Jewish people got their soulmate dreams after their Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. He also may or may not have rage quit and almost broke the keyboard to the desktop computer when he did.

(Jaina had taken one look at the webpage he was on and hugged him. He still vividly remembers her fiercely telling him, “ _Fuck_ those guys, little lamb. You get your soulmate dream when you get it, okay? Nothing more and nothing less.”)

Thankfully, Nath didn’t get in trouble for almost destroying the family computer, but yeah. He stopped worrying about the semantics and reasoning, if only to live his best life and piss off the dumb neo-Nazi scumbags online.

Alix hadn’t gotten her soulmate dream either. It was a fact they were both comforted by. So all they had to do now was wait, and weather people’s questions and tips about soulmate dreams.

Alix even admitted to Nathaniel one day that she wasn’t sure if she was even going to get a soulmate dream at all.

“I mean…I don’t want to get married. It’s weird. What if…What if there’s no one out there that’ll be my soulmate?” she wondered, as they both huddled under a blanket fort in her room.

Nathaniel stopped munching on his chips, and considered. “I mean…Jalil and Jaina got their dreams about each other, but they weren’t even married to each other in the dreams, remember? I think it’s possible you’ll still have one, but you won’t marry them.”

“…Yeah,” Alix eventually said, biting her lip. “I think they’re called ‘platonic’ soulmates?”

“Yeah, those!” Nathaniel nodded, nudging at Alix’s thigh with his toes. “So, don’t really worry ‘bout it, right? And I’ll still make you my best man if I get married to my soulmate.”

Alix grinned back at him. “Yeah. You too.”

That had been enough. It comforted them, the knowledge that they understood each other, that they would make sure to be there for the other, whether they got married or not.

* * *

Nathaniel blinks hazily, looking at himself in the reflection of the mirror before him.

He’s older. Taller. Broader.

His hair is the same red, but it’s shorter, and slicked back. His eyes are the same blue, but they somehow look sharper. He thinks he’s wearing guyliner and a hint of makeup, from the way his cheekbones stand out, shimmering slightly when the light hits them.

He’s wearing a suit, too. It’s a three-piece, and its fancy, obviously custom made. A black suit with red trim, a red vest with blue stitching, and an electric-blue tie.

Nathaniel feels his heart hammer in his throat. He must know a designer or something, if he’s got a suit like this.

Before he can overthink it, he feels a punch to his shoulder, an incredibly familiar motion. He whirls around, eyes widening as he takes in who’s obviously an older version of Alix, dyed hair and all.

She’s wearing a blue pants suit. Her hair is pink, but a darker shade and cut differently. She has eyebrow piercings, and a whole lot of them on her ears, too. She’s standing almost eye-level with him, only a few inches shorter than him, which is a trip. Seems like she finally got the growth spurt she’s been wishing for, after all.

“C’mon, Groom-to-be. I’ve gotta get you out of this room and to the alter. Best man privileges and all, right?” she grins cheekily at him, giving an exaggerated wink.

Nathaniel finds himself smiling. Even in the future, Alix still acts the same. It was comforting, the familiarity of it.

“Right,” he nods, words tumbling automatically from his mouth. “Lead the way, best man.”

This was the day of his wedding, he’s realizing. The thought of getting married and having Alix by his side to support him for it is incredibly exciting.

Alix grins back at him and reaches over to grab his arm.

* * *

Next thing he knows, Nathaniel is blinking his eyes, fighting down a groan. There’s a crick in his neck. The woodgrain under his head looks familiar.

He sits up, eyes darting around himself. He was in Miss Bustier’s Homeroom class. He must’ve taken a nap.

Thankfully, it looks like it was just before Homeroom was supposed to start.

Nathaniel quickly gets a notebook and pencil out. He hides his phone beneath his desk, thankful that he sits at the very back, and had an easier time to get away with something like this. He’s just about to text Alix when he gets a message from her.

_Al_

_8:27_

I GOT MY DREAM

WT

F

_8:28_

??

same tho

_8:28_

DUDE

IM UR BEST MAN

OMFG

_8:29_

holy shit

i dreamed that 2

_8:29_

Y O

_8:29_

wtf?

_8:29_

WTF

The bell rings, starting class at 8:30. Nathaniel is quick to mute his phone, though he still keeps it out under his desk, texting Alix furiously while Miss Bustier makes morning announcements.

* * *

Nathaniel’s Bar Mitzvah happens. It’s even more anxiety-inducing than he’d feared.

His extended family coos at him and Alix, about how cute it is that they both found out they’re soulmates on the same day. They both grimace, uncomfortable at the instant assumption that they’re dating and going to marry each other in the future.

Jaina is there as a good shield, acting as the perfect extrovert to soak up all the attention. Jalil also helps pull the two aside to give them breaks, when he can get away with it. When they put their minds to it, both Nathaniel’s older sister and Alix’s older brother can work like a well-oiled machine. Must be because they’re platonic soulmates.

Nathaniel is especially grateful for their intervention when he hears one of his estranged aunts—who he thinks is named Karen, but he’s too scared to ask if that’s her actual name—loudly ask Jaina and Jalil when they’re getting married.

As they speed-walk away with much haste, Nathaniel whispers to Alix, “I am so, _so_ sorry.”

In answer, Alix huffs and punches him lightly on the arm. “You better not _just_ make me your best man. I call godmother privileges, too.”

“You can terrorize my second kid,” Nathaniel jokes with a snort. “I think Jaina and Jalil will tag team the godparents thing for my firstborn, if they don’t outright try kidnapping.”

“Y’know, fair.”

* * *

Marc is a happy child. He’s raised in a warm home. He’s loved by his Moms. They support him in everything. Marc knows who he is, and what he likes, and not many other kids his age can say the same thing.

He knows he likes boys. Even if he wasn’t going to marry a man in his future, as he’s seen in his soulmate dreams, he still knows he’s gay. Boys are just…There’s something about them that’s hard to even describe with words, but Marc knows he likes them very much, all the same.

Since Marc was ten, he’s been having dreams of his soulmate. Small snippets of moments. It’s all scenes of domestic, daily life.

He never knows the other’s name. But he knows that his soulmate _has_ to have natural red hair, because his eyebrows match, as well as his armpit hair. And who’d go through the trouble of dying their body hair…?

Coupled with the freckles and blue eyes, and the perfectly spoken French, it all narrows down his possible dating pool very significantly, Marc’s glad to find.

Not everyone decides to save themselves for their soulmates. People still date each other without being tied through fate. People probably still fall in love with others that they aren’t destined to be with. Hell, a good percentage of people don’t even marry their soulmates.

Marc, however, is a huge romantic. He’s also incredibly, undeniably, gay. He wants a loving husband in his future, and fate’s pretty much ready to give him one on a silver platter.

After all, those small snippets of his future that come to him in his dreams paint a very amazing picture. They’re like precious gems he hoards, each dream worth its weight in gold to him. He even keeps a dream journal right by his bed, so he can write down all the details before he forgets them.

He’s had eight dreams so far, at fourteen. That averages two per year.

Marc smiles softly, sifting through the entries once more. The spine of his dream journal has gotten so worn over the years, he’ll need to either fix the journal cover itself, or transfer the entries to a different journal altogether.

His soulmate calling him down to breakfast from another room while he laid in bed. His soulmate setting down a cup of coffee next to him at his work desk. His soulmate threading a hand through his hair, his head in the other man’s lap. His soulmate passed out on his own work desk, with him carefully putting a blanket over the man’s shoulders. His soulmate laugh-wheezing until he literally cried.

Marc waking up to a sweet note by his bedside—though he didn’t remember the exact wording of it, it’d said something along the lines that his soulmate was sorry for leaving so early in the morning, but breakfast was left ready in the microwave.

Marc flanked on both sides by his Moms, looking down the aisle towards his breathtakingly gorgeous soulmate standing at the altar, beaming so hard his mouth felt like it hurt even when he woke up.

That last one—it was the most recent. And also the most exciting dream Marc’s gotten, aside from his very first dream.

He smiles dreamily, sighing, as he his eyes go unfocused. He can’t _wait_ to meet his soulmate…

* * *

Nathaniel is one hundred percent sure he’s straight.

He’s had a crush on Marinette for a solid year now. He got Akumatized two days ago over his crush. He apparently took Marinette out on a date while as an Akuma.

However, something about the entire situation is just…It rubs him the wrong way. He may not have forced Marinette into the date, or kidnapped her, but he doesn’t even remember what he did or said.

Marinette had assured him that he wasn’t violent like other Akuma until the heroes intervened, said that ‘it was sweet’ the way he’d treated her on the date, but… he still feels supremely uncomfortable about it.

He feels so bad, he stops crushing on Marinette altogether.

And he’s still sure he’s straight. After all, just because he stopped crushing on Marinette, it didn’t mean anything.

Except…He gets another soulmate dream.

And it doesn’t star Marinette, like he’d first theorized. Hell, it doesn’t even star a woman at all.

Nathaniel had blinked his eyes open to see a very pretty person hover above him. They were so gorgeous—long lashes, emerald eyes, plump pink lips, a heart-shaped face—Nathaniel had mistaken his soulmate as a woman.

Then his soulmate opened their mouth, and a distinctly deep, _masculine_ voice came out. “Don’t fall asleep on me, now,” his soulmate said, the words teasing and warm.

Fingers gently combed through Nathaniel’s hair, scratching lightly as his scalp. He couldn’t help it; he automatically relaxed into the touch, eyes falling to half-mast.

“You’re like a big kitty-cat, like this,” his soulmate giggled. Nathaniel’s heart had skipped a beat, because the sound was just so _cute_ , it was criminal.

Then his soulmate picked up his hand, and kissed his knuckles, and Nathaniel fucking melted _instantly_.

He’d felt…safe. Content. _Loved_ , even.

The two rings on his ring finger glinted in the light.

And that’s when Nathaniel woke up, his face warm enough to cook an egg on it. He had to scream into his pillow in pure confusion right afterwards.

Nathaniel had been sure he was straight, but hoo _boy_. He has a second soulmate, who he’s very obviously married to. A very gorgeous, soft, loving soulmate.

A soulmate who’s a man.

Nathaniel’s never Googled anything faster in his _life_.

* * *

Nathaniel doesn’t tell Alix about the new soulmate dream until afterschool the next day. This is mainly because he underwent immense amounts of Googling and a did a sketched portrait of half-remembered features from his new—male—soulmate.

It won’t be the easiest to find his romantic soulmate. The man had green eyes, which were unique, and was unfairly pretty to boot. But he had black hair, which wasn’t going to help narrow things down too much, though the French helped in that…

It didn’t matter, though. The amount of care and obvious adoration Nathaniel’s romantic soulmate-slash-husband showed him made the hopeless romantic side of him scream and do cartwheels.

So, fuck it. He’s got a crush on a guy. His future soulmate. Who he only sees in his dreams. And it’s the first gay crush he’s ever had. And Nathaniel’s going to end up marrying the guy.

It’s a _very_ confusing way to figure out he’s bisexual, but, well. His life was a wreck anyways. What’s one more problem to add to the pile…?

Speaking of problems, Alix all but tackles him to his bedroom floor and screams in his ear when he tells her about the new soulmate dream.

“YOU HAD A NEW DREAM WITH A BRAND NEW SOULMATE AND DIDN’T TELL ME?!” she belts, while Nathaniel attempts to wrestle her off him, and fails miserably. Alix was tiny, but ferocious and strong. Nathaniel, who is a small noodle, stands no chance against his best friend’s ridiculous strength.

“Hello to you too, Al—”

“Don’t be sassy with me, Nath! I want details. DETAILS!” she demands, getting off him only to haul his ass up and shake him by the shoulders.

“I will if you stop shaking me!”

“Deal.”

Alix is intent and silent on she sits on his bed while Nathaniel tries to explain his dream, showing her his sketchbook where he sketched his half-remembered vision of his romantic soulmate.

“Hm…” she hums, taking in the sketch, his sketchbook balanced on her knee.

“It’s not exactly accurate, since I’m still not that great with realistic portraiture. Not to mention I didn’t draw it right after the dream,” Nathaniel admits, wringing his hands together as he watches her. “But it’s the best I could do.”

Alix nods her head, holding her chin. “All I can say is this: damn, you get a _really_ pretty husband.”

“I _know_ , right…!” he says, just a bit hysterical, as he gestures with both hands at his opened sketchbook. “How the _fuck_ do I land someone like _that_?”

“Maybe your future hubby’s _really_ into redheads,” Alix drawls with a smirk. She cackles at him when she moves out of the way of a swat at her shoulder. “Alright! Alright. Could be that you’re both huge nerds, or something. Or you met when working together on, like, a comic?”

“Maybe,” he huffs, crossing his arms on his raised knees and settling his chin on them. He stares at the portrait he drew, even while it was upside-down. His voice comes out smaller and softer than he intends when he says, “I just…He seemed really nice. Like he cared about me.”

When he cautiously looks up at Alix, her blue eyes have gone soft. “Hey. He’s supposed to, y’know? You’re soulmates, for one. And two, you deserved to be cared about.”

Nathaniel finds his insides unknot, at that. He smiles back at his best friend, feeling an overwhelming amount of gratefulness and fondness. “Yeah. Guess you’re right.”

“’Course I’m right. I always am,” Alix sniffs, jokingly haughty.

Nathaniel snorts, feeling his fondness grow, as he unfurls and takes his sketchbook back. “Sure. Keep telling yourself that.”

He’s ridiculously lucky, to have two soulmates. Having a platonic soulmate and ultimate best friend in Alix is a lifesaver, honestly…No matter how many dangerous stunts she gets herself into.

* * *

Marc’s absolutely riveted by the school’s website. No, not the website itself. Of the artwork posted on the website.

Another student—name: Nathaniel Kurtzberg—has created artwork of Ladybug and Chat Noir.

It’s gorgeous art. The poses, the movement, the breathtaking dynamicism of it all. Marc’s never felt so inspired, so filled with the overwhelming need to write. Not unless he counts his soulmate dreams.

Finding a smile stretching wide in his mouth, Marc quickly downloads all the drawings he can find of the artist on Dupont’s website.

He knows what he’s going to write about now.

* * *

Marc’s never regretted writing anything. Never. Not even when bullies in his old schools ripped his notebook straight from his hands, sneering down at the stories he’d based on his soulmate.

Marc is one hundred percent regretting anything and everything to do with Ladybug and Chat Noir, when Marinette Dupain-Cheng beams after reading his latest entry, and tells him that he should come to the Art Club she’s in.

Because apparently, in her words, “I have a friend who’s looking for a writer for his comic book! And he’s making it about Ladybug and Chat Noir, too! I think you’d both work super well together!”

Marc can’t help but freeze in place. There aren’t many students in Dupont in general, so what are the chances that there happens to exist _another_ male student other than Nathaniel Kurtzberg who wants to create a Ladybug and Chat Noir comic book…?

Very low.

Oh God, he’s probably going to meet with the boy who’s inspired him with his amazing drawings…!

“We have Art Club on Wednesdays at 4:40. We’re on the smaller side for a club, so I can guarantee that no one will bother you coming by! Just stop in when you have time, okay?”

Marinette looks back at him in such an open, kind, and earnest way, Marc can’t do anything but agree.

Marc doesn’t have many friends in Dupont. He just started attending this school year. He has maybe three friends in his Homeroom class, and it’s a hard maybe, since he’s never actually confirmed with them about their friendship status.

Marc is a wallflower that sticks to himself. He finds the quietest places to sit and write. Hell, he writes under the fucking stairs like some sort of— of weird loser stair goblin, or something!

Marinette is nice, though. She isn’t even in his Homeroom, but she reached out to him and befriended him instantly. She’s kind, and enthusiastic, and supportive—all traits Marc has picked up, even if he doesn’t interact with her often.

She’s also massively clumsy. So clumsy in fact, they had their first meeting with her tripping on the last step of the stairs and landing sprawled-out on the concrete. Marc had seen the disaster and rushed from under his hiding spot to help her up and gather her things back in her backpack.

It was the start of an odd, but beautiful, friendship.

Marinette also apparently really likes being helpful to newer students, because she also befriended two brand new students in her Homeroom class. This fact helped Marc warm up to her quickly, allowing him to trust her with something like his writing.

Which is why he’s currently staring down at his notebook like it’s personally betrayed him. Does he have enough courage to go to the Art Club…? To possibly meet with the artist who’s inspired Marc to write so passionately, something that only his soulmate had done before?

Marc’s not entirely sure.

* * *

Dupont’s Art Club has five members.

It’s admittedly a small club. But by all technicalities, a club only needs to have two actual members: one to be the President, and one to be the Treasurer. All other positions, or even number of students, is optional.

Nathaniel and Alix had joined the Art Club their first year of Dupont and have stayed in it since then. The oldest members graduated last year and passed down the senior positions to the both of them, since they were the ones with seniority rights.

Alix snapped up President status instantly—which is no surprise—and Nathaniel took the Treasurer position. He probably should’ve run for Vice President, but he gave the role to the more extroverted Marinette. Then Rose and Juleka joined, and they became the Social Media manager and Secretary, respectively.

At five members, they ran a small, but respectable, club. So Nathaniel could also tell right away when someone new dropped by.

He saw a head of dark hair hover through the windows, before the person began to pace outside the door.

If it was Marinette, she would’ve entered already. So that just left it being someone new. A possible new member, maybe…?

Nathaniel turns to stare at the door, finding it more riveting than his failed attempts at writing a script—all crumbled up and scattered around him on the table. He taps his pencil against his mouth as he watches and waits.

Behind him, the art teacher hums, having obviously noticed that a student was by the doors as well. “Welcome to the Art Club!” Mr. Carracci calls cheerily and warmly, as the door opens and a meek-looking student shuffles in.

The student has messy, black hair, and is wearing a bright red hoodie. They’re hunched in on themselves, with what looks like a notebook held against their chest.

The student snaps their head up to look over at Nathaniel and Mr. Carracci.

Nathaniel can’t help but first notice the other’s emerald eyes. Very _pretty_ eyes, with long, dark lashes. Alongside a soft, heart-shaped face, and plump, pink lips.

Features that look almost _familiar_. And obviously younger, not an exact replica to the ones in his dreams. But the features Nathaniel’s been obsessing about for nearly two months, all the same.

The pencil slips listlessly through Nathaniel’s fingers, landing on his sketchbook and rolling off the table in a loud clatter. He pays it no mind.

The student—boy—Nathaniel’s romantic soulmate—stares back at Nathaniel. The boy’s pink lips are parted in a small ‘o’ of surprise, emerald eyes blown wide. Recognition and shock are plastered on his face.

“Holy _shit_ ,” Nathaniel breathes.

* * *

Marc can’t believe his eyes. Literally.

He’d managed to dredge up the courage to actually enter the Art Club room, as Marinette had suggested to him. He’d kept his head down, until he heard a greeting from the teacher, and turned his attention over to be polite.

Marc had seen the teacher first—a kind-looking older gentleman with curly, gray hair—and then his gaze slid over to the student sitting at a table next to the man.

That’s when he thought that he might have accidentally slipped into a dream.

Sitting at the table was a boy with bright-red hair, blue eyes, and cute freckles dotting his face. The _exact_ same features of his soulmate; just softened and obviously aged down.

The pencil the other boy was holding slips through his fingers and clatters to the ground, as he gapes back at Marc. “Holy _shit_.”

Marc blinks, a bit startled at the statement of disbelieving awe from the other boy.

“But—Y-you—I—I just—” the redhead stutters out, his face rapidly turning a deep pink. It was a startingly adorable sight. Marc’s own cheeks warm at the thought, as well as the intense scrutiny, the other boy all but drinking him in with his clear-blue gaze.

“Oh my God, is this him?!” a voice crows, loud and gleefully delighted. Marc jolts, trying to look over his shoulder—only to see a girl literally zoom past him.

He turns back to stare at the pink-haired girl on skates, who’s grabbed the redheaded boy by the shoulders. “Nath, is it…? Is it him?!”

“I—I think?” the redhead squeaks, face slowly turning the same red as his hair, eyes wide and wild.

All the pieces seem to click together. This boy is his soulmate. He recognizes Marc as being his soulmate. Even one of his friends(?) knows about Marc being his soulmate.

The breath rushes out of Marc’s lungs. He steps forwards, feeling weak-kneed as he does. “I-I’ve seen you in my d-dreams,” Marc manages to stutter out, on the edge of hysterical. “I—Y-You’re, you’re m-my soulmate…?”

It comes out as a question, because a part of Marc can’t help but think that this is too easy. Finding his soulmate at fifteen? It seems insane. Impossible.

But the other boy—his soulmate—beams back at him. The expression seems to fill his entire face.

The pink-haired girl shakes the redhead slightly by the shoulders, a wide grin on her face. The boy takes this as his cue to rise from his seat, nearly tripping over himself to get to Marc.

“Yeah! Yeah, I…Hi,” the other says breathlessly. His hands hover and flit about, like he’s not sure what to really do with them. “Um, I’m N-Nathaniel. Nathaniel Kurtzberg.”

“M-Marc. Marc Anciel,” Marc introduces, feeling incredibly shy, but also happy that his soulmate seems just as nervous and elated to meet him for the first time.

“N-Nice to meet you,” Nathaniel nods, holding his hand out for a handshake that Marc takes automatically. The two awkwardly shake hands. Marc is infinitely glad that his fingerless gloves help in hiding how sweaty his palms have become. “S-sorry, I’m not—I dunno what the, like. The proper protocol is? F-for meeting one of your soulmates. So.”

“N-No, no! I get it,” Marc rushes to assure him, trying for a smile. “It’s…it’s a lot? A-And I didn’t think I’d m-meet my soulmate at s-school, either, y’know?”

“Yeah, no, same,” Nathaniel nods furiously. “Like—I-I thought I had a few years yet, right?”

“S-same though.”

The two are still awkwardly shaking hands. They both look down at the same time, freezing in place.

Marc hears a girl start to laugh. He looks up, to see Nathaniel snapping his head over at the offender, glaring. “ _Alix_!”

“W-What? C-Can’t I laugh at h-how much of a disaster you are?” the pink-haired girl from before snickers out.

“Alix, that’s not very nice,” the art teacher chides her, before turning to look at the newly joined soulmates. His smile is warm and amused as he says, “Meeting your soulmate is a big event that everyone experiences differently. And I’m sure you boys are ready to go and speak in private about it.”

Marc can’t help but flush, feeling incredibly sheepish for having had a revelation in the middle of this club room—in a club he hasn’t actually joined yet! But the teacher is kind and patient, and obviously giving them an out to leave and work things out.

“Y-Yes, Mr. Carracci,” Nathaniel demurs, pulling his hand from Marc’s, much to Marc’s internal disappointment. “Thanks.”

Marc’s eyes dart about the room, glad to note that the four of them are the only ones here. That mitigates his mortification just a bit. At least, it’s better than having this meeting in the middle of a large crowd of people.

Nathaniel is quick to pack up, all but shoving his sketchbook and pencil in his bookbag. He shoulders his bag and walks back to Marc with a small, shy smile. “S-So…I think we have a lot to talk about, huh?”

“Yeah, I-I think we do,” Marc nods, biting his lip before giving his own small smile.

“Is the park an okay place to talk?”

Marc considers it for a few seconds. It would be less awkward than going straight to one of their houses, that’s for sure. “Y-Yeah, that sounds good.”

“Right,” Nathaniel nods, turning slightly to wave at his friend and teacher. “Um, thanks, Mister. We’ll be going now.”

“It’s no problem,” the teacher—Mr. Carracci—says with an amused smile. “Ah, and congratulations to you two.”

Marc stutters out a thank-you, alongside an equally flustered Nathaniel.

* * *

The two are just about to leave the clubroom in a haste, before one last declaration is made.

“I’ll leave you alone for today,” the pink-haired girl—Alix— calls out, staring down Nathaniel, smiling sharply. “But just wait ‘til tomorrow…!”

“ _That’s_ not ominous or anything…” the redhead mutters under his breath, rolling his eyes, as he leads Marc out of the room and closes the door behind them.

Marc can’t help but giggle at the joke. “A friend of yours?” he asks, both as a lowball question to break the ice, and something born from curiosity. Nathaniel and this Alix girl both seemed very close. Best friends, maybe?

“Platonic soulmate,” Nathaniel explains, smiling awkwardly at Marc. “She’s my best man at the wedding, so. You’ll be seeing a lot of her.”

“She seems fun…?” Marc offers tentatively, earning a snort from his soulmate.

“Yeah, that’s _one_ word to describe her…”

Marc can’t help but giggle again, feeling giddy. After all, Nathaniel mentioned a wedding…So that means he had his soulmate dream about it, too. That doesn’t guarantee anything, but. It helps soothe something in him.

He may have had an insanely long crush on his soulmate from just the bits and pieces he saw in his dreams, that’s true. But already, he can tell that he’s going to enjoy Nathaniel Kurtzberg’s company.

Maybe enjoy it enough for the rest of his life.

But they’re still young. They have time for that later.

All that matters right now is the now, not the past, or the future. Just him, and Nathaniel, making their way out of Dupont to go to the park and talk things out. Figuring out what to do next. Together.

* * *

Alix smirks at Nathaniel, as he finally brings his face out of his hands and stops his gushing rant about him and Marc’s talk at the park.

Marc was…even more amazing in person, if possible. He was just as shy and awkward as Nathaniel was, but incredibly sweet, and very mature on top of that. He’d offered that the two could start out as just friends, if the thought of dating right away made Nathaniel uncomfortable.

Nathaniel— who doesn’t have many friends to start with, but has absolutely zero romantic prospects— had asked if Marc was okay with possibly dating right away, because he sure as hell was willing. But if Marc wasn’t, he was absolutely willing to wait.

“We have time to figure it out, but…I think I’d like to get to know you either way,” Marc had admitted, face darkened with a blush and green eyes bright.

Nathaniel got a quick peck on the cheek, Marc’s number, and the promise of their first date for Saturday.

“Two months after you learn you’re bi, and you’ve already gotten yourself a boyfriend,” Alix drawls teasingly, kicking lightly at his leg with her toes. “You work _fast_ , Nath.”

All Nathaniel can do is sputter, flustered, his face burning as he shoves it in his hands again to scream. Alix’s laughter echoes across his bedroom long after he’s stopped screaming and started to whine at her, beating her with one of his pillows.

“I’d ask when the wedding’ll be, but I already know it’s happening!” his traitor of a best friend cackles out.

It’s true, but she didn’t have to _say_ it.

But the next time Nathaniel dreams, it isn’t a soulmate dream of the future. It’s a hazy thing, where he dreams of Marc’s shy smile and his pretty, green eyes.

He can’t wait to fall in love with Marc, properly. Can’t wait for them to fall in love. Together.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> Spanish terms:  
> Mijo= A familiar way to say 'son' in Spanish, a shortening of 'mi hijo' which means 'my son'  
> Que gusto= A casual exclamation to say something like 'how amazing' or 'how nice'.
> 
> This fic was super fun to write! Love me both platonic and romantic soulmates. Friendship, fluff, and romance are my favorite things.


End file.
